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THE
STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT /
THE UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK / ALBANY, NY
12234 |
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TO: |
The Honorable the Members of the Board of Regents |
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FROM: |
Johanna Duncan-Poitier James A. Kadamus |
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COMMITTEE: |
Full Board |
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TITLE OF
ITEM: |
Discussion on Proposed Amendments to the Rules of the Board of Regents and the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education Relating to the Requirements of the Conferral of a College Degree as it relates to Students who have not Graduated from High School |
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DATE OF
SUBMISSION: |
May 10, 2004 |
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PROPOSED
HANDLING: |
Discussion |
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RATIONALE FOR
ITEM: |
To implement policy |
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STRATEGIC
GOAL: |
Goal 1 |
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AUTHORIZATION(S): |
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SUMMARY:
I.
Discussion in March
At the March 2004 meeting of the Board of Regents, the Department presented proposed changes to the Regents Rules and the Commissioner’s Regulations relating to the requirements for the conferral of a college degree for students who have not obtained a high school diploma or a high school equivalency diploma. The discussion centered on students who were home instructed.
During the discussion in March, we pointed out that there is a conflict in existing regulations. Regents Rule 3.47 requires that a student complete a high school program in order to be conferred a college degree in New York State. Regents Rule 3.47 also requires the student to provide evidence of the completion of the high school program before enrolling in college. The completion of a high school program can be evidenced by:
· a high school diploma;
· a high school equivalency diploma; or
· a letter from the superintendent of schools indicating that the student’s course of study was equivalent to a high school program.
However, Section 100.7 of the Commissioner’s Regulations allows a student to obtain a high school equivalency diploma while attending college by completing a specified 24 college credits.
The proposed amendments to the regulations would remove this conflict.
At the March meeting, three specific issues were discussed:
Issue 1: Eligibility of home instructed students to receive Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) funds.
New York State Education Law identifies specific requirements for a student to be eligible for TAP funds. They include:
- High school diploma;
- A recognized equivalency of a high school diploma;
§ Letter of equivalency from the superintendent; or
§ A high school equivalency diploma by passing the general equivalency diploma (GED) test
or
- Passing a federally-approved ability-to-benefit test.
Response from the Home Instruction Community
Representatives of the home instruction community have asked that they have the authority to self-certify what constitutes the completion of a high school program. This self-certification, if recognized by the Board of Regents, would similarly enable home instructed students to be eligible for Tuition Assistance Program funds (as with other options already available, GED, diploma, etc.). The home instruction community pointed out that the federal government allows students to self-certify the completion of a high school program by either home instruction or by graduating from high school in order to demonstrate eligibility for federal student financial aid. The Department did not, however, recommend any changes in Education Law relating to the eligibility requirements for New York State Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) funds. In the Department’s judgment, the pathways to receive TAP funds are sufficient and requiring documentation is appropriate. The New York State TAP program provides in excess of $700 million a year to students with economic need to attend New York State’s colleges and universities. This is a significant investment by the State in postsecondary education for its residents. In our view, the statutory requirements for eligibility for TAP funds are appropriate given the magnitude of the investment by the State.
Issue 2:
Students beyond compulsory school age
and the requirements to receive a college degree in New York
State.
In New York State, compulsory school age is from ages 6 to16 (6 to 17 in New York City). The proposed regulation would modify the requirement that the student must have a high school diploma or its equivalent in order to enroll in college. Furthermore, the proposed regulations create two additional pathways that would:
· Allow students to take a specified 24 credit hours and not apply for a high school equivalency diploma, but use those 24 credit hours to demonstrate that they have a broad based secondary preparation; and
· Allow students to use an earned college degree to demonstrate that they have met the requirements for the secondary preparation.
The addition of the proposed 24 credits option is based on comments from the home instruction community that they perceive a “stigma” attached to either the acquisition of a high school equivalency diploma or taking the GED test. The intent is to allow a student to complete a broad based liberal arts and sciences general education core without having to apply for a credential other than the college degree. If enacted, when the student graduates, the only credential he/she would receive would be the college degree.
Issue 3: Students who are still of compulsory school age and were in attendance at college full or part time.
Last year, there were two court cases involving students who were still of compulsory school age who completed the requirements for a college degree without obtaining a high school diploma or its equivalent. Education Law requires that superintendents of schools ensure that students, who are still of compulsory school age, are receiving an appropriate education. The proposed regulation is intended to ensure that there is a linkage between the high school requirements and the college program. It requires the superintendent of schools, or the chief academic officer of a non-public or charter school, approve the student’s attendance at the college. The proposed regulatory changes would allow the superintendent of schools to certify that a student, who is still of compulsory school age, completed the secondary education requirements through collegiate instruction and, therefore, could be awarded a college degree.
II.
Information Requested by the Board of
Regents
During the Board of Regents discussion of these proposed amendments in March, a number of questions were raised and additional information was requested. Board members asked for data on the number of home instructed students in New York State. Attachment A is a breakdown by county of home instructed students in Grades K-6 and 7-12 for the 2000-01, 2001-02, and 2002-03 school years. In total, there were 11,722 students in Grades K-6 who were home instructed in 2002-03 and 7,936 in Grades 7-12 who were home instructed for that same school year.
Attachment B is a comparison of performance by public school students and home instructed students on select Regents examinations. This information was also requested by members of the Board. In interpreting these examination results, we must be cautious since home instructed students are not now required to complete the Regents examinations and, therefore, this data may not be representative of all students being home instructed at the high school level. The data on the Regents examinations indicates that public school students are passing the Regents examinations at a higher rate than home instructed students with significant differences in the Math A, Physical Setting Chemistry, Physical Setting Earth Science and Global History and Geography examinations.
The Board asked what the impact of these regulations would be on New York City. As Attachment A indicates, for the 2002-03 school year, there were 923 students in Grades K-6 and 715 students in Grades 7-12 in New York City who were home instructed. This represents 8.3 percent of the home instructed students in the State of New York. We have requested comments on the proposed regulations from both The City University of New York and the New York City Department of Education. We will provide you with the comments when they are received.
The Board asked the Department to look at additional examinations that could be used in lieu of the GED test to award the high school equivalency diploma. Staff met with the Assistant Commissioner for Standards, Assessment and Reporting to review examinations which might be equivalent to the GED. It is the Department’s determination that the only appropriate examinations for this purpose are the five Regents examinations that all students need to pass in order to be awarded a high school diploma or the Department’s approved alternative examinations.
We also examined the SAT and the ACT examinations. The College Board (on their Web site) defines the SAT I examination as measuring:
“…verbal and math reasoning abilities. These abilities relate to some of the things you need to know to be successful in college.” They further elaborate by stating that “the SAT I measures verbal and math reasoning abilities that you develop over years of schooling in your outside reading and study. The test is designed to allow you to demonstrate your abilities in these areas regardless of the particular type of instruction you receive or textbooks you have used. These important abilities – understanding and analyzing written material, drawing inferences and differentiating shades of meaning, drawing conclusions and solving Math problems – are necessary for success in college and life in general.”
“Many colleges and universities use the SAT as one indicator among others-class rank, high school GPA, extracurricular activities, personal essay, and teacher recommendations-of a student’s readiness to do college-level work.”
There is no social studies or science content and the verbal math and reasoning skills are not based on high school curriculum. For these reasons, the SAT I is not an appropriate alternative to the GED test.
With regard to the ACT test, the Web site states:
“The ACT assessment is a national college admission examination that consists of testing English, reading, mathematics and science.” They further state, “The ACT assessment test is curriculum-based. The ACT assessment is not an aptitude and IQ test, instead the questions on the ACT are directly related to what you have learned in your high school course in English, mathematics and science. Because the ACT is based on what is taught in the high school curriculum, students are generally more comfortable with the ACT than they are with traditional aptitude tests or tests with narrow content.”
“ACT test scores, high school grades, level of academic preparation, out-of-class accomplishments, special interests, and aspirations-these and other kinds of information help admissions officials identify applicants who can benefit most from their programs.”
However, there is no social studies content and it is not known how the content of the ACT is aligned with the Regents learning standards in English, math or science. For these reasons, the ACT is not an appropriate alternative to the GED test.
III.
Feedback from the Field
Since initial publication in the State Register, the Department has received significant feedback on the proposed regulations. We received letters from:
- parents who are home instructing their children;
- organizations representing home instructed students;
- colleges and universities in New York State;
- SUNY System Administration;
- New York State United Teachers; and
- the New York State Council of School Superintendents.
In general, most individuals who commented requested additional flexibility beyond what the proposed regulations would provide. In some cases, there was confusion concerning the differences between the existing requirements and the proposed changes. In addition, there were some significant misconceptions about the existing requirements and proposed regulations, including:
· The regulation would still require the student to pass the GED test in order to enter college;
Response: The GED test is only one of many options.
· The GED test is a new requirement;
Response: The GED test has been an option for many years.
· The superintendent of schools has no responsibility for students of compulsory school age;
Response: Education Law assigns this responsibility to the superintendent.
· The intent of the regulation is to discriminate against home instructed students;
Response: The intent of the proposed regulation is to provide more pathways for a college degree for home instructed students.
· The State Education Department is reviving a long dormant regulation that has not been in effect;
Response: The regulation was always in effect.
We did receive many comments that discussed alternatives to the proposed regulations. Some of the alternatives were:
· Allowing students to use the ACT or SAT in order to demonstrate they have the knowledge and skills to enroll in college;
· Requiring home instructed students to pass the five Regents examinations as is required for students seeking a high school diploma;
· Having the Commissioner of Education determine the equivalency of instruction for students who are still of compulsory school age and who are using college level work to satisfy the secondary education program;
· Removing the role of the superintendent from determining equivalency and allow the colleges to make their own assessment;
· Requiring a letter of equivalency from the superintendent if a student completes an Individual Home Instruction Plan (IHIP);
· Disconnecting the approval of the IHIP from equivalency since the IHIP does not provide for the superintendent to oversee, monitor or assess the program the home instructed student is undertaking;
· Allowing parents to use their own judgment, issue their own diploma to a home instructed student indicating that the student has successfully completed the secondary preparation program through home instruction.
We have analyzed all the comments and have had additional discussions with various stakeholders. We have explained why the SAT/ACT tests are not appropriate and the statutory role of the superintendent to determine equivalency for students of compulsory school age. However, some of the comments received have led us to recommend additional adjustments.
IV.
Proposed Revisions to the Draft
Regulations
Given the discussion by the Board of Regents at the March meeting, and the many thoughtful comments we received from the field on the draft regulations (Attachment C), staff is recommending that the Board consider three changes to the proposed regulations advanced in March.
Students who are beyond compulsory school age
1. The draft regulations allow for the completion of 24 credit hours without applying for the high school equivalency diploma. Members of the Board indicated that the 24 credits (6 credits in English Language Arts, 6 credits in Mathematics, 3 credits in Natural Science, 3 credits in Social Sciences, 3 credits in Humanities and 3 credits in Career and Technical Education and/or Foreign Languages) may be beyond the standard general education core for some associate and baccalaureate degree programs. Regent Cohen recommended that a college be provided some flexibility within the specified 24 credits as defined above and substitute courses within the registered degree program. We recommend that the proposed 24 credits option be adjusted as follows:
· 6 credits in English Language Arts
· 3 credits in Mathematics
· 3 credits in Natural Sciences
· 3 credits in Social Sciences
· 3 credits in Humanities
· 6 credits in courses within the registered degree program
This proposed change will provide home instructed students, beyond compulsory school age, with greater flexibility to demonstrate equivalency.
If this approach is endorsed, the Department will make the same change in the 24 credits requirement for high school equivalency programs.
2. We recommend that an additional option be provided to allow a student beyond compulsory school age to be eligible for a college degree if the student meets the prerequisites and passes all five Regents examinations required for a high school diploma. We also recommend that the State Education Department’s approved alternative examinations be accepted for this purpose (e.g., specified advanced placement examinations, SAT II examinations and International Baccalaureate Examinations). Students beyond compulsory school age, who elect not to take a GED test or complete the specified 24 credits, would still be eligible for a college degree through the passage of these examinations.
Students who are still of compulsory school age
3. We received significant comments about the workability of a regulation that required the superintendent or chief academic officer of a nonpublic or charter school to sign-off on any college course a student takes during the regular school year. The intent of the proposed regulation is to address those students who are using college coursework to meet secondary education requirements. However, we appreciate the difficulty that may occur if all students who are in college courses during the school year have to present a letter from the superintendent or the chief academic officer to the college in order to enroll in those courses.
We are recommending that the regulation be adjusted to require a letter from the superintendent or chief academic officer for only those students who are in attendance full time in college in lieu of a high school program. This would only impact a small number of students in the State of New York. Students who are in attendance part time in college during the school year would also be in attendance in a public, nonpublic, charter and/or home instruction setting and, therefore, the superintendent or chief academic officer would be aware of the student’s academic program. Home instructed students, who are in attendance in college full time while still of compulsory school age, would reflect the college study in their Individual Home Instruction Plan.
Next Steps
If the Board concurs with these proposed changes, the draft regulations will be revised and republished in the State Register. The Regents would discuss the draft regulations at your June meeting and they would be scheduled for action at your July meeting.
Attachments
